Arthur A. Ekirch Jr., was a founding Member of the Board of Advisors of the Independent Institute and a professor and author who taught American intellectual history. An expert on the relationship between government power and individual liberties, Dr. Ekirchs career included faculty positions at Hofstra University, American University, and the University at Albany.

Professor Ekirch held degrees from Dartmouth College and a Ph.D. in History from Columbia University. He was also instrumental in the founding of the Peace History Society that is an affiliated society of the American Historical Association and a member of the National Coordinating Committee for the Promotion of History, the International Peace Research Association, and the International Congress of Historical Sciences.

A prolific author, Professor Ekirch wrote scores of articles and books, including the acclaimed volumes, The Decline of American Liberalism, The Idea of Progress in America 18151860, The Civilian and the Military: A History of the American Anti-Militarist Tradition,Man and Nature in America,The American Democratic Tradition: A History,Voices in Dissent: An Anthology of Individualist Thought in the U.S., Ideas, Ideals and American Diplomacy: A History of Their Growth and Interaction, Ideologies & Utopias: The Impact of the New Deal on American Thought, American Intellectual History: The Development of the Discipline,The Challenge of Democracy: A Concise History of Social Thought and Political Action, and Progressivism in America: A Study of the Era from Theodore Roosevelt to Woodrow Wilson.